Mind Games
by MirrorBreaker
Summary: Tired of playing second fiddle to the desires of the boys, Sam ditches them for a day and ends up making a new friend. But said friend has a plan in store for her and Danny. DxS. T for occasional coarse language and sexual references. Complete!
1. On Any Other Day

**Hello. First fan-fic here. Hope you enjoy it. You better not think I own DP, lest you deserve five across the face. Tal's an original character. Hopefully he won't become a "Gary Stu", but that might be a bit difficult.  
**

_**  
Chapter 1: On Any Other Day**_

Mondays at school are hardly ever fun. It's bad enough having to deal with boring classes, bad food, and jerks that you'd never meet outside of the classroom. This problem is even more acute when your school has some major issues with social structure, such as Casper High. In this wretched high school, filled with dumb jocks and vapid popular girls, "hardly ever" turns to "never ever".

Fourteen year old Samantha Manson, the black haired, amethyst-eyed, black-garbed individualistic goth of Casper High, was having a similar thought. After suffering through a few hours of boring lecture over things that she thought were common knowledge, she was now being tormented by her best friend, and her _best _friend, going gaga over the gorgeous gremlin that called itself a girl. Everyone else called that gremlin Paulina.

"Guys? Hello?" Sam called, trying to get their attention. Not getting a response from either of the two, she snapped her fingers in front of the clouded sapphire eyes of the friend closest to her. Like every other time she tried, that didn't work. At all.

Sam frowned. Usually, she put up with it. Any other day, she would wait while her best friend, the resident technology buff Tucker Foley, and her _best _friend, shy-unassuming-I-catch-ghosts-in-my-spare-time Danny Fenton drooled over the gremlin.

Those days, however, didn't follow a nightmare where she confessed her love to Danny and got a rejection right in the face. Those days did not follow a night where she wandered through her memories of Danny under Ember's spell, wondering what would could have been. So today, Sam felt she deserved a break from the lovelorn looks. Sam put her salad back in her paper bag, walked out of the lunchroom, and headed down a hall.

_"I wish there was a classroom that I could sit in and eat, that didn't have guys that thought with their genitals rather than their brains,"_ she thought bitterly. Looking through the windows of various classrooms, most of them either contained classes in progress, or a teacher preparing for the next class. She'd rather have privacy.

When she reached the end of the hall, she saw a little classroom with the lights on. No one seemed to be in it. Sam turned the handle, and the door opened. A smile of satisfaction, the first smile she had in school all day today, snuck onto her face as she entered the room.

She looked around. The classroom must have been a former science lab. In the front of the room, where she was, there were twelve wooden lab tables, six to a side. In the back of the room, there were four clusters of computers, four to a cluster. Scanning the room with more care than she had when she entered, it appeared to be empty.

With a smile of satisfaction that something **finally** went right today, Sam sat down, pulled her salad out of the paper bag, and began to eat.

* * *

_"You know, Paulina will never go for you without a selfish reason behind it..."_ a voice in Danny's head nagged while his eyes bored holes into the Latina girl.

_"Shut up! She's turning her head this way!"_

_"So is Dash, Romeo."_

"Fentina!" the muscle-bound, blond-haired, crap-for-brains athlete called out, snapping Danny and Tucker out of their Paulina-induced trances.

"You and four-eyes over there better stop staring at Paulina before I pound both of you into yesterday." the jock threatened, standing up and cracking his knuckles. The two adolescents gulped as several other members of the football team did the same.

Paulina piped up, choosing now to acknowledge the two social outcasts. "Like you two _losers _would ever have a chance with me anyway! I wouldn't go out with you even if I was desperate!"

The girls and the jocks laughed while Danny and Tucker looked down in disappointment. Looking at them again, Paulina's brain picked up on change in the normal scene. A change she could work with. "Why don't you go find your loser goth girlfriend, Fenton, and raise the coolness of the cafeteria by 50 points?"

Danny and Tucker's heads bolted up. "She's not a loser," Danny retorted absent-mindedly as his head whirled around. "Sam?" he said aloud before registering the fact she wasn't there. "Aww, man..." he groaned, before grabbing Tucker and running off amidst the popular kids laughing at them.

Danny (and therefore Tucker, who was firmly in Danny's grip and was rather annoyed about that) left the cafeteria, and ran to the first place Danny could think of regarding Sam's location: her locker. When he got there...

...If you, the reader, thought she was there, you didn't pay attention to the above section of the story. Shame on you.

Danny frowned. "Where IS she? Why did she leave?" he asked to no one as ran his right hand through his space-black hair.

"We stared at Paulina for about half the lunch period, Danny. She probably got fed up and left." Tucker piped up.

Danny thought about this for a while. He was just about to ask why she would leave if she never did before when he was met with Tucker's revenge for Danny dragging him down the hall.

"Y'know, Danny, you never did deny that Sam was your girlfriend back there." the red-capped boy needled slyly.

Danny's gaze went from Tucker, whom Danny was looking at while the spectacled boy was talking, to everywhere **but** Tucker. "I-I just forgot."

"You didn't seem to forget denying that she was a loser."

"S-so? What's your point?" Danny stammered.

Tucker grinned devilishly. His best friend's face was burning with embarrassment. "You have the hots for Sam!" the boy half-yelled, laughing.

"No! She's just my friend! Don't you pay attention?" Danny yelled, with enough speed to tell Tucker that Danny felt exactly the opposite way.

"I do pay attention, which is why I know that's a load of crap."

"Shut up, Tucker." Danny thought of something fast to change the subject. It took a rather large amount of brainpower. "Let's check classrooms."

The two walked down the empty hall, one person to a side, looking for Sam in one of the rooms. After a whole ten seconds of searching, Tucker decided to push Operation Payback v1.8 forward.

"Danny has a crush on Sa-am!" Tucker said in an off-key, sing-song voice.

"Shut up, Tucker." the halfa muttered.

A little time passed before: "Danny has a crush on Sa-am!"

_"Shut up, Tucker,"_ Danny growled, more anger creeping into this reply.

Another wait. "Danny has a crush on--"

"SHUT UP, TUCKER!" Danny yelled, turning to face Tucker with an expression that made it look like the halfa was ready to kill.

Tucker looked subdued, and didn't say anything else on the matter. He really couldn't, a bunch of teachers had came out in the hall to see what was going on, and Tucker knew saying something about it again would sign his death certificate. Inside, though, he was smiling. Mission accomplished.

They reached the end of the hall, and looked inside the last classroom. If everything was normal in Casper High, they should have seen Ms. Manson eating peacefully in the room...

...Seriously, everything normal in Casper High? _Please._

The two saw a darkened room, chairs stacked on tables. Dust caked everything. The room appeared to have been out of use for a few years.

Crestfallen, Danny mumbled quietly "Let's go back and look ag-," before the bell signaling return to class rang.

"Looks like we'll have to find your girlfriend later," Tucker said off-handedly, running back to class.

Danny ran after him. "You're a _dead_ man, Foley!"

* * *

Sam heard the bell, but didn't really want to go to class and face her best/_best_ friend right now. She was vocalizing all of her thoughts to herself. Saying things aloud seemed to make her feel better.

"I'll get detention if I don't go, though, and that'll be worse than being in class with those two..." she muttered. She threw away her paper bag and started to leave.

"You don't have to leave, y'know. If you want to stay, I'll write a pass for you," a voice rang out from the back of the room.

Sam's head snapped to the source of the voice. It was a tall, lanky guy. Brown hair, green eyes behind a pair of glasses, rather pale skin. Solid dark-blue shirt with black swish pants and black sandals. Sam glared at him.

"Who the hell are you! How long have you been back there? Were you listening to me!"

The guy chuckled, moving a few steps forward.

"Name's Tal Marylin, I've been back here all day working, yes, I did listen to you. It was a lot more interesting than organizing formulae, to be frank. Anyway, like I said, I can write a pass for you if you don't want to leave. I'm a teacher's aide."

Sam just glared at him. The absolute nerve! This guy was obviously back there the whole time; there wasn't another door into the room. He didn't even say anything when she entered the room! Like she'd want to stay in a room with someone as conniving as that him!

On any other day, she'd walk out right now. On any other day, she'd actually give the guy a piece of her mind, _then_ walk out. But today... Sam felt she needed someone to talk to. This guy, as rude as he was, had already listened to her spill some of her guts, and he _did_ say her guts were 'interesting'. She contemplated staying. One thought was bugging her, though.

_"What if this guy just wants me to stay because he hopes to have a shot with me, as unlikely as that sounds?" _she thought.

As if the guy could read her thoughts, he spoke up, giving her a slight smirk. "Y'know, that kid you described... Fenton, I think his name was. He sounds cute. Pity he isn't a junior like I am."

Sam let a laugh escape her. She found it funny because it was just so... so... blunt. She smiled.

"Fine, I'll stay... Tal, was it? But only if you'll hear me out."

He gave a smart-ass grin, his eyes looking at her levelly. "I certainly don't have anything else better to do. But you have to tell me your name."

"Sam Manson. You should get that pass out now, you'll be here for a while."


	2. Change of Heart

**Whee. Second chapter, shorter than I thought it was going to be. I should find a better time to type and update this than 2 A.M., but I digress. Hope you enjoy, reviews always welcome, I don't own Danny Phantom, this'll be that last time I say that in this story since afterwards I'll assume you get the point, etc.**

* * *

_**Chapter 2: Change of Heart  
**_ Danny was fairly depressed as class dragged on. Sam was gone, he had forbade Tucker to speak because the boy was getting on Danny's last nerve, and Paulina had flat-out rejected any form of relationship with him _ever_. He wanted to go look for Sam more, but he couldn't get out of class. Besides, Lancer didn't ask him or Tucker where Sam was, so obviously she's out for a reason. He put his head down and lets his thoughts roam, his attention therefore drifting away from the lecture. Soon, another mental voice, different from the one in the previous chapter, piped up. 

"_You think Paulina dumping you is soooo horrible, but it really isn't. Now you can get over her, and concentrate on your **real** love." _

Danny frowned. This wasn't what he needed. _"Screw off. I made Tucker shut up for a reason."_ he snapped back.

"_I'm your voice of reason, I can't 'screw off'. Besides, you know you like her, you admitted it when you assumed I was talking about Sam." _the voice countered. Danny didn't reply. He was angry that he couldn't think of a reply to get him out of the bind.

"_You just don't want to admit it because it's weird." _accused the voice.

"_And even if I do like her, so what?" _Danny replied glumly. "_It's not like she likes me like that anyway. She broke my heart once befo--"_

"_--Finish that sentence and I'll give you a mental stupid slap. That was just to break you_

_out of Ember's spell. She specifically said that she 'didn't know' if she wanted to actually be your girlfriend. Meaning she's considered it. Also, 'fake-out make-out'."_

"_The first word in there is 'fake'."_

"_Like Tucker said, it still has 'make' and 'out' in succession."_

Danny sighed, frustrated. _"I couldn't go out with her anyway. Paulina's just too... too..."_

"_Attractive."_ the voice finished. "_And that's all she is, and that's all you like her for. You like Sam for everything else. All of the right things."_

"_Yeah, that'll go over well with her." _Danny retorted with bitterness. '_Sam, I like you, I just don't think you're pretty.'"_

"_You think she's pretty, at least subconsciously. You just don't normally think about it because of the whole friendship thing. If you just imagine her body and analyze it, she'll illicit more of a reaction than Paulina ever will." _the voice replied matter-of-factly.

Danny, taking the advice of what he thought was himself, quickly pulled up a mental image of Sam. A light tinge of red touched his cheeks, but he didn't get a chance to think about her further.

"_What part of **illicit more of a reaction **didn't you get?"_

Sam's body disappeared from the boy's mind, confusion filling the halfa's brain. After about thirty seconds, his mouth curled into a lewd smile. _"Ohh, that kind of reaction."_

The bell signaling the end of school rang. Danny had to stay late for detention, but he didn't feel that as crummy as he did before. _"I'm glad I got this sorted out... with... myself."_

"_I promise I won't tell anyone you have heart to heart talks with yourself." _the voice replied, amusement dripping from the sound.

Danny then thought of something to ask. _"Why is it that my voice of reason is all witty and stuff, and I'm only a C student?"_

The voice replied coyly: _"It's hard to reach you with all of the stupid floating around." _

"_Hey!" _Danny thought indignantly, but the voice made no reply.

* * *

Sam and Tal laughed as the dismissal bell rang. Sam stood up. "It's been nice talking to you. It's nice to talk with a person who doesn't ignore you when water vapor walks by."

Tal smirked. "Heh. I'm sure Danny'll come around."

Sam walked to the front of the room. "I think that all the time. It hasn't happened yet."

Tal stood up, eying the girl. She squinted at him; his gaze was a knowing one, and his eyes seemed to shimmer. It was freaky, but she didn't doubt him when he replied with, "Trust me. I'm cursed with the male mind, I know how it works. Once he takes a look at you from something other than a friend perspective, he'll forget all about Paulina."

Sam gave a warm smile at this. "I hope it'll be permanent this time." She turned to leave. "Well, bye, I guess. I should get home so I can answer when Tuck and Danny inevitably call." She opened the door.

"Hey, Sam?" Tal called out.

"Yeah?"

"Do you wanna meet me at the arcade tomorrow after school? Just to play games, hang out, and stuff?" he asked.

Sam looked at him with skeptical eyes. "...We've just met. Isn't that kinda fast?"

"Only if it's a date. If you remember my comment when you first got here, you'll see that's not the case. Besides, you've already spilled your guts to me."

She sighed and shrugged. "Point. But just so you know, that's the kind of thing Tucker and Danny would do."

"Point." he mimicked, "But they didn't show you the best game ever."

"Which is?"

"You'll find out tomorrow. See ya."

Sam frowned at the lockout, but obliged and left. "I never did agree to it..." she muttered to herself, knowing that she had gotten roped into it anyway.

Inside the room, Tal chuckled, and took off his glasses to clean them. "Yep, Sam. His mind, heart, and hormones are already being nudged in your direction. All I need to do is meet him to get a feel for his powers, and I'll be all set to bring you two together once and for all.

And by doing so, I bring about Mr. Phantom's demise. God, I love being me."

The junior laughed, before walking out of the door himself. When he left the room, the view of the lit up science lab faded. In its place was the dark, dusty room that hadn't been used in years.


	3. Three M's

**And as I get more comfortable with this, the headers get longer. Point of note: I never knew how warm and fuzzy nice reviews made you feel. Thanks to those who did so.**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter, which was posted under pain of death. **

_**  
Chapter 3: Three M's**_

Sam sprawled onto her bed, closing her eyes and sighing. Her fingers hurt from all that button pushing on the calculator and copying with her pencil. She just spent three quarters of an hour doing her math homework. Geometric sequences and series weren't hard, but the assignment was grueling. ("110 questions! Is she trying to make our brains fry!" Tucker had complained.) The long assignment was the end of her homework, her having gotten the rest of it done in a half hour.

"_Of course,"_ she thought to herself, _"I'll have to go through the assignment again when Danny inevitably calls and asks for help. And people wonder why I understand everything so well. I do the assignments twice."_

Sam looked at the clock. 6:15. He'd be calling any minute now. And sure enough, she heard the phone ring. Sam rolled over and answered the line.

"Hi, Danny." she answered immediately.

"Hey! How'd you know it was me?"

Danny was met with a soft chuckle from the other end of the line. "You **always** call around this time, Danny. It's the story of my weeknights: get home, do my homework, eat dinner, do _your_ homework..."

"You don't do my homework, you just help me with it!" Danny protested.

"Yep. I help you with _every single problem,_" Sam shot back.

"Fine! I'll go ask Tucker for help, then," Danny pouted.

"Oh, you know I'm just messing with you. If I really had a problem with it, I would have stopped helping you loooong ago."

"...Sam, where were you this afternoon at school?"

Sam's eyes widened, and she swallowed hard. She had completely forgot she'd ditched them today, probably around problem fifty-seven or so.

"Sam? You there?"

She sighed. _"Honesty's the best policy,"_ she thought to herself with resignation.

"I was in one of the science labs with one of the teacher's aides. He wrote me a pass so I didn't have to go back to glass this afternoon."

"...Wait, _he?_" Danny asked swiftly, the second word carrying a tinge of jealousy.

"Yes, _he._ Do you have a problem with that?" Sam asked angrily.

"N-no! I just assumed you went to see a girl; I figured you'd be fed up with guys after what me and Tucker did." Danny improvised. He smiled. _"I so saved myself,"_ he thought.

"That makes sense, but nah. He was actually quite sensitive. I was pleasantly surprised."

Sam heard a crunching sound on the other end of the line. "Danny? Something wrong?"

Danny, breathing deeply to calm himself, threw the pop can he had crushed into the trash bin. "Nothing's wrong," he stated, aggravation seeping through his voice.

Sam was quiet, deep in thought. _"He couldn't be jealous of Tal... could he?"_ Her powerful mind quickly turned this possibility into revenge for Danny's ogling of the giant gremlin. And maybe she'd be able to deduce his true feelings for her.

Sam declined to mention Tal's "orientation", instead opting to not say thing else on the matter and let Danny stew on his own.

"So, problem one."

Danny shook his head, trying to push aside the possible scenarios his mind was making in regards to Sam's absence. With another guy.

Sighing, he dropped the subject. He turned to the book.

"Yeah... how do you do geometric sequences again?"

* * *

The moonlight blasted through the bedroom window of Danny Fenton, illuminating the halfa's night-black hair, sky-blue eyes, pale-skinned legs, not-that-stinky feet, red-and-white T-shirt, and polka-dot boxers. 

But that wasn't what was keeping him awake. His head turned slowly to the clock in his room. After reading the time (11:30), he rolled his head back to look at the ceiling.

"_Dammit, why do I care that she was with a guy anyway?" _he thought with frustration.

"_We went over this in class: YOU. LOVE. HER. Do you need a neon sign, like the ones on the house, to spell it out for you?"_

"_Look who it is, my voice of reason that's nothing like me."_

"_Of course I'm nothing like you, you've never listened to me! How do you expect to emulate my greatness if you always go and do stupid things? Anyway, you should be grateful; I've graced you with my presence twice today."_

"_I'm so thrilled,"_ Danny thought back dryly. _"I mean, even the voices in my head insult me. It's sad, I'm not even popular in my own head."_

"_Sure you are. But unlike your fantasies, I'm concerned with what is true. Your love for Sam, for example."_

"_Like that matters, she likes that guy she hung out with today." _Danny moped.

"_Do you **like** to make errors in judgment?" _the voice asked rhetorically. Before Danny could answer, it continued. _"You know nothing about this, and it's only been one day. Don't assume. If you're that worried about it, then go and a--."_ The voice stopped in mid-sentence.

"_Go and "a"? That doesn't even make sense, and you're supposed to be the reasonable one!"_

"_If I finished it, you'd never get to sleep since you'd be up worrying all night. Listen, I don't know about the rest of the brain, but I know I need to get my beauty sleep. To get your mind off of things, why don't you do that physical appreciation of Sam that we were talking about earlier today. You **are** alone now."_

In the silver light of the moon, one could see the crimson tint on Danny's cheeks. _"Well, g'night, then."_

"_'Night, Casanova."_

Danny closed his eyes, and ran his mental eyes around Sam's mental body. Her luscious, pale legs. The boots only she could make look good. Her delicate, petite, yet oddly strong body. Her soft, raven hair. He could smell her lavender scent, and it was enrapturing. Then his eyes focused on the part of her body he treasured the most – her eyes.

Those large, amethyst eyes, the ones that he adored so much. It drove him insane whenever he caught a glimpse of her when she was in the middle of doing something to support her environmental beliefs; her eyes positively sparkled then. And when she had him locked in a stare, he could feel himself being swallowed up in them, as if they were shadows.

Hot, sexy shadows.

Danny opened his eyes, and practically felt the heat rise from his face. _"Crap, the warning wasn't a joke..." _he thought with embarrassment. Well, he certainly couldn't go to sleep now. He could do one of two things, and he wasn't going to wait for the second.

"_I'm going to hate myself in the morning..."_ was his last thought before he pulled the covers over him. Thirty minutes later, the boy's breathing became uniform as he fell asleep, the moonlight shining off of the last drop of sweat running down his forhead.

* * *

Tal let out a hearty laugh as he walked around the dust-caked room he was in earlier today. 

"And now that it's safe to say Sam will never have to worry about Paulina getting Danny ever again, a third of my mission is complete. And to think,_ she _told me that those two would get around a love-based plan. But, I guess it's to be expected. Ember's a novice in comparison to _me_.

Alas, I daresay this is enough self-gratification for one night. Time to plot how to get one of them to admit their love..."


	4. Mean Mr Mental

**Rather long chapter, having more than half the amount of words than the previous three chapters combined. Next chapter will probably be short, though. 3 reviewers. **

**Hope you enjoy: **

_**Chapter 4: Mean Mr. Mental

* * *

**_ Tucker Foley ran down the sidewalk, trying to catch up to his best friend, who had left for school without him.

"Danny, wait up!"

Danny stopped, letting Tucker catch up to him. When the techno-geek arrived, he put his hands on his knees and tried to catch his breath.

"Tucker, you are so out of shape." Danny teased.

"I don't fight ghosts all the time like you do, Danny." Tucker retorted quietly. He started walking, and Danny followed.

"I don't fight them all the time, Tucker. In fact, it's been kinda quiet lately."

"I bet that means the next one that shows up is going to be really nasty."

"Thanks for the support," Danny said dryly.

"Did you and Sam make up yet?" Tucker inquired, smirking as he did so.

"Will you give that a rest already!" his friend snapped.

"Okay, okay!" Tucker relented. "Did you find out where she went?"

Danny swallowed forcefully, then sighed. "She was in one of the science labs with another guy." He could feel his heart twist in pain as he said it, screw his 'voice of reason' who said it didn't mean anything.

Tucker caught this, but was still afraid of being pounded into the sidewalk if he made mention of Danny/Sam. So, he took refuge in talking about Danny's other crush.

"Don't worry about it, man. There's always Paulina."

"Enh, I really don't like her anymore."

A loud _ping_ reverberated through the morning air as Tucker, in shock from Danny's statement, ran into a streetlight pole. He was flat on his back, rubbing his forehead.

"Tucker, are you alright?" Danny asked, although he couldn't supress his laughter. How the hell does someone run into a pole? It's a stationary object, and they weren't moving fast at all.

"Are _you_ alright, Danny?" Tucker replied as Danny helped him up. "Because I could have sworn I heard you say you don't like Paulina anymore."

"I did."

Tucker faked having a heart attack. _"Why!" _he asked/shouted.

"I only liked her for her looks, and now that I think about it, there's other girls in the school that look just as pretty as her and don't hate the ground I walk on." Danny replied, choosing to look at the houses they were walking by as he talked.

"Like who?" Tucker inquired.

"S—none of your business." Danny snapped, his cheeks touched with red.

"Uh-huh. _Right,_" Tucker replied. The two walked the rest of the way to school in silence. Even without the Freudian-slipped-S, Tucker knew Danny was talking about their mutual friend. That was the only girl Danny wouldn't have mentioned to Tucker – even Valerie would have been, considering she was trying to get all buddy-buddy with the blue-eyed boy.

The two entered Casper High with little to no problems with Dash and company. They first stopped at Tucker's locker so he could drop off his stuff. When they went to Danny's, they found Sam waiting for them. Danny fell back a bit while Tucker walked up to say hello. The blush on the halfa's face was evident.

"Hey, Danny! Get over here and talk to us!" Sam yelled to him.

"_Just like I thought – I hate myself,"_ Danny thought as he walked over and put his things away.

"Danny, is something wrong?" Sam asked.

"N-no...nothing's wrong!" he stammered.

"You're not still mad because I spent yesterday afternoon with a guy, are you?"

Danny sighed. So much for having saved himself. "No, I'm over it. I mean, it doesn't mean anything, right?" he asked.

Sam chuckled. "Right."

The first bell then rang, saving Danny from further interrogation. "Let's get to class," he said hastily, before walking off to class.

Sam looked at Tucker. "What's his problem?"

Tucker just smiled slyly. "I'd tell you, but then he'd kill me." Tucker turned and walked to class as well, leaving Sam by Danny's locker.

"Does he like me?" she whispered to herself, before heading to class herself.

* * *

Soon, it was time for lunch again. Danny was pleased to see Sam walk over and set her body and her lunch at their standard table. Being an Ultra-Recyclo Vegetarian must be doing her good, he thought, as her skin, although pale, was soft and nourished. His eyes drifted from her arms to her small body, then her head, which was bent down over her salad. He was so busy taking it all in, he didn't have time to react when her head snapped up and her eyes locked his in place. 

"What are you staring at, Danny?" she asked, her voice hard.

"Um... I... uh... I was just thinking. I didn't know I was staring at you."

Sam let the obvious lie slide. If she pressed further, Dash and cronies, who were already sneaking looks at the table, would defnitely get involved.

"What were you thinking about?" she asked instead. Bad move, Sam.

"I...was wondering if you wanted to do something tonight."

"Hey, look over here! Fentina's asked his loser girlfriend out on a date!" Dash yelled to the whole cafeteria. His posse laughed.

"...Do something tonight with Tucker and myself _as friends_." Danny amended, glaring at Dash.

"Not tonight, Danny. I'm going to play at the arcade with Tal." Sam replied softly.

Danny looked down, abashed. "He's the guy you hung out with yesterday," he stated. He assumed it from her tone of voice.

"Danny, I'm so--"

"--It's okay, Sam. You deserve to have a life."

"Haha, Fentina got dumped."

An uneasy tension settled around the table, and stayed there until the bell rang. The three friends walked out of the cafeteria in silence, each of them wondering what the hell went wrong.

* * *

"I fail to see how stomping on a pad in time to arrows constitutes as a: dancing, and b: fun." Sam deadpanned. It was 6-ish, and she was at the arcade with Tal. She was glad no one else was here since it was a school night, since his "best game ever" happened to be Dance Dance Revolution. She had heard about it, and she wasn't impressed. 

"So it doesn't necessarily look like dancing unless you make it look like dancing. Still, it's loads of fun and a good workout." he replied. He figured she'd shoot him down on the 'good workout' part, but if he didn't say it she might suspect something.

"I'm a goth. I don't do sweat." she replied.

"That's a shame. 'Cause, y'know, all the guys I've talked to say that it's rather hot when a girl does well at it." he wheedled.

Sam thought about that for a moment, before making her decision. She jumped onto the other pad.

"Versus, please."

* * *

Danny was laying on his bed, his back to the door, rather depressed. The voice was wrong; this was something. You don't go to the arcade with people on the second day you met them unless you really like them. You just... don't! He was bored, angry, and depressed, and the knock on his door certainly didn't help matters any. 

"Danny, are you all right?" came the voice of Jazz Fenton through the door.

"Leave me alone, I'm fine!" he yelled back.

"When you came home, you went straight to your room, slammed the door, and haven't been out since. Don't tell me something's not wrong!"

"Stay of this, Jazz! I don't want to talk to you!" Danny shouted angrily.

"Well, too bad. I'm coming in there!" she replied. She turned the doorknob, but she couldn't push the door open. She tried a few times, before stopping in exasperation.

"Daniel Fenton, open this door!"

Inside his room, Danny smiled. He had taken the liberty of rearranging his room when he got home. Blocking the door with his bed was a nice touch. But before he could reflect on his moment of triumph over his sister any more, he felt frozen air escape from his lips, and saw blue mist rise.

"Took long enough. At least I have something to do," he muttered to himself. He got off his bed and ran to the window.

"I'm going ghost!" he yelled with enough restraint so Jazz wouldn't hear him. When he became Danny Phantom, he phased through his window and flew away, leaving the poundings on his bedroom door behind him.

* * *

He flew around the skies, invisibly, mind you, looking for the phantasm. His eyes darted around the ground, looking for any sign of ghostly activity. 

He didn't expect to see what looked like Sam knocked unconscious, with a trademark neon green ghost looking like he was about to inflict physical harm on her.

"SAM!" Danny shouted in fury. He rushed to the ground, trying to save her...

...but when he reached where he saw her at, he was greeted with nothing. No Sam. No ghost. No anything.

"Where did she go?" Danny said out loud, manically searching for where she might have gone. In his mania, he noticed the large, green-glowing orb floating towards him too late. His cries of pain were smothered as he was crushed into the ground. The orb quickly shot into mid-air, before becoming stationary as the halfa phased back through the ground, looking angrily at his attacker. He was about to go vent his frustration on it when the orb dissipated. In its place was an odd-looking ghost.

The ghost seemed to have on a velvety-looking suit and pants of the same quality, which fit rather well on the ghost's wiry frame. The ghost seemed to be wearing leather slippers on the feet, and square-rimmed glasses on the face. Short hair covered the top of the ghost's head, his eyes were directed squarely on Danny, and his face wore a rather smug look. Of course, all of this was neon-green.

As Danny was busy evaluating his enemy, the ghost was doing the same. The black-and-silver jumpsuit fit the boy's body nicely; the ghost could see some of the developed muscles. This coupled with the tanned skin, snow-white hair, and glowing green eyes, made the ghost wish he hadn't already started playing matchmaker with the ghost and the goth.

Breaking the staring contest, the ghost said, "That emblem is atrocious. Just looking at it would corrode the soul. Provided I had one."

Danny swiftly replied, quite tired with all of the insults he was getting this week. "I'm not the one who's all green."

"Hmm... you're right. Green isn't my color. Purple should work quite nicely." The ghost's clothing changed to the said hue.

"... If that's your power, I'm going to have a field day with you."

"Just because my unique abilities don't consist of zapping things doesn't mean I'm weak. After all, I'm not the one who's seeing visions of his girlfriend."

Danny gritted his teeth. "She's not--"

"I really don't care. Bottom line is, you're not going to be able to touch me, kiddo." the ghost went on.

"We'll see about that!" Danny, thoroughly angry, yelled. He rushed at the ghost, and promptly ran headfirst into an ectoplasmic barrier. Green, of course.

As Danny shook off the blow, the ghost took the opportunity to get under Danny's skin again. "Told ya you wouldn't be able to touch me, Phantom."

"You're getting really annoying, you know that?" Danny replied through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, that's what everyone in the Ghost Zone says. And then they call me mental. Other popular nicknames include 'psychopath', 'jerkface', and 'asswipe'. I figure since I'm called mental so often, I'll just take that as a name. So call me Mr. Mental. Actually, make that Mean Mr. Mental, after that one song by The Bugs."

Danny snickered. "You mean The Beatles?"

"Does it look like I care? Now are you going to just float there or are you going to prove me right?"

Danny glared at the ghost, and tried to rush him again. When he neared the now-visible barrier, he tried to phase through it. That failed.

"Try again, Phantom."

Danny tried again, blasting the appearing barrier with energy as he approached it.

"Fail."

Danny tried once more, picking up more speed.

"You suck at this game."

Danny stared at Mental, his frustrated, furious eyes meeting Mental's amused ones. Danny rushed again, not noticing his fists glow green.

As Danny rushed at the barrier, he pulled back his right fist. He punched the barrier...

..and it shattered. Mental, responding quickly, bend backwards. Danny sailed harmlessly over him. Danny spun around, smirking.

Mental smirked as well. "Well, it's been nice playing with you, Phantom. But you tried five times, and didn't hit me once. I think that's enough for today."

"What? You're just going to leave?"

"Oh, trust me, Phantom, I'll be back. And I assure you, my games are much more interesting the second time around."

Mental just vanished, leaving Danny floating alone in the sky. The teenaged halfa blasted a nearby tree in rage, before flying back home.

* * *

"How far along are you, Mental?" Skulker asked through a small portal in the dust-caked science lab at Casper High.

"You say that like you expect me to be having a difficult time. Honestly, I fail to see how he's been giving you all trouble."

"Quit with the insults and answer the question!" Ember's voice, coming from the background, reprimanded.

"Oh, you're talking to me in front of the Council. Hi, Council," Mental said dryly. The Council, consisting of Walker, Skulker, Ember, Desiree, Spectra, and Vlad (who wasn't with the group), wasn't amused.

"Fine, fine. I'll have my report ready by Thursday evening. I sent an illusion of myself out today to test Phantom out."

"Good, good. Make sure you don't screw this up," Skulker replied, before closing the portal.

Mental frowned, before reverting to his human disguise.

"What is it going to take to get it through their heads that the master of illusions, mind-reading, and barrier-making doesn't _screw up_?" Tal muttered irately to himself.


	5. Memories by dj samm

**Well, after going out of town for 10 days, and then a bit of lost motivation when I got back, I update! All it took was seeing that Fanning the Flames was going to be shown. uu**

**Chapter's longer than I expected it to be. Thanks to all the reviews, which I had fun reading on public internet during that 10 day absence. Hope you enjoy.

* * *

_Chapter 5: Memories_**♥ **_by dj samm_**

Sam shut her eyes leaned her back against her locker. Tal hadn't told her the physical pain that came along with playing that stupid game! ** And** he had already roped her into playing with him tonight and tomorrow afternoon. At least she was progressing quickly...or, at least he said she was. She just hoped that this would pay off for her, and this hope was intensified when she stood up straight again, and winced. She could have sworn she felt a blister pop.

"Hey, Sam!" Tucker yelled, as he and Danny walked up to her. Sam quickly turned around as he spoke to hide her grimace; she didn't want them to start asking her how she was doing – if Tucker found out her legs were feeling like they'd aged 90 years, he'd never shut up since she couldn't do anything to him. And if Danny found out...well, she didn't know what he'd do. She'd finally decided that was jealousy she'd heard in his voice the day before, but what did it mean? Surely _he_ didn't like _her_, one of his best friends, like she liked him...or did he? And what about Paulina?

"Sam?" the boys asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Oh, hi!" she welcomed, turning around. She cursed inwardly, her tone was too cheerful. And she wasn't the only one who noticed.

"Is something wrong?" Danny asked. The blush from yesterday morning was plaguing his cheeks this morning too. Apparently, Sam was too preoccupied to notice, which suited him just fine. He did **not** want to try and explain why kept blushing in her presence, she'd never speak to him again and Tucker would never let him live it down.

She gave a small chuckle, which told him to pay attention. "I'm fine guys."

"Are you sure?" Tucker pressed, which earned him a death stare from the girl.

"I'm _fine_, Tucker," she growled. Tucker stepped back. "Don't hurt me!"

"How was the arcade?" Danny asked quietly, his hands in his pockets and his gaze towards the lockers. Sam froze up. Tucker stopped cowering and looked to Danny, then Sam, then Danny, then Sam.

"Oh, it was a lot of fun..." she replied airily, her voice a bit higher in pitch. "I'm going back to play tonight and tomorr--" she continued, before stopping as she caught what she was saying. Another awkward silence filled the air, drowning out even the other conversations all the other kids in the hall were having.

"_Why did I say that? Now he thinks I like Tal, and now he's depressed even further; he was depressed enough when he found out I was going to the arcade with Tal last night..."_

"_Why did I think I even have a shot with her? Figures, I finally figure out all the emotions in my head that have been buzzing around since high school started, and some other guy already got to her... And now my chest hurts. This is a great day, it really is..."_

"_Why are they so bad at reading each other's feelings? This is pathetic; it's plainly obvious that each of them like the other, but THEY DON'T NOTICE! But hey, it keeps me amused."_

Danny finally spoke, snapping the three out of their thoughts.

"I think I need to use the bathroom," he whispered, his voice quivering with _something_. He ran off.

Sam bit her lip. That quiver...she could tell he was on the verge of tears. But that would be absurd! She turned to Tucker, who was looking off to the bathrooms.

"Sam, you don't have a crush on that guy you hang out with, do you?"

"No, he's just a friend," she replied. "And besides..."

She hesitated for a moment, wondering if she wanted to reveal that. In that moment, she realized that if she didn't, she might never get a chance with Danny.

"...he'd be more attracted to Danny than to me."

Tucker's head whirled to face hers, a look of surprise and amusement crossing his face. "You mean that guy you've been hanging out with for the past two days is as straight as a circle!"

Tucker seemed to have yelled that, which drew the stares of everyone in the hall to Sam. She frowned.

"There's nothing wrong with that!" she yelled, before storming off to class, infuriated at what she felt was the blatant bias against people like Tal.

Tucker stood in the hall for a moment, before running off to the bathroom.

* * *

"Why didn't she tell us!" Danny yelled, kicking the wall tiles in the bathroom.

"You've been really violent these pa—," Tucker began to comment. Danny's livid, puffy-eyed gaze silenced him. Tucker thought a moment, before speaking again.

"Why are you so angry? You still have a chance with her!"

"That's not the point, Tucker! Why didn't she mention that yesterday at lunch? It's almost like she wanted us to think he liked him, with all that attention she's giving him!" Danny fumed.

"Like what we did on Monday when we stared at Paulina?" Tucker retorted. After he said it, he went quiet. He didn't mean to, but he actually had a point. A thoughtful silence hung over the two

Danny swore under his breath. "Of course... this is all just revenge for all those times we ignored her...how could I have been so blind?" he muttered. Not giving Tucker a chance to reply, he stormed out of the bathroom.

Tucker blinked. "He has it worse than I thought!" he remarked, before heading back to class.

* * *

The three kept to themselves during class. During lunch, Tucker was the last to arrive at the lunch table. He walked over to see Sam and Danny eating in silence, their heads in their food.

"Did either of you understand the math lesson?" he asked while sitting down. His answer was more silence.

"...Fine, don't talk."

The three ate quietly. The lack of talking at their table soon drew the attention of the gremlin, who had a knack of spotting trouble like this and then making it worse.

"Oh, Danny!" Paulina called out in a sing-song voice while walking over to him.

"What." he replied bluntly, no inquisitive tone in his voice.

"Oh, I was wondering if you'd like to go out to eat tonight with me!" she asked sweetly, standing too close to him for Sam's liking. The said goth girl buried her face in her salad.

"No."

"...Excuse me?" Paulina snapped, her tone one of shock and rage. "D-did you just reject me, Danny?"

"Yep."

"But...but..." she stammered, not understanding what was happening. Fenton always went gaga for her! Always!

"Obviously Danny doesn't want to take a dip in the shallow ends of both the personality and gene pool, Paulina," Sam retorted, finally turning to face the scene with acid in her voice.

Paulina looked like she had just been slapped. Dash lumbered over, cracking his knuckles. "Keep your girlfriend's mouth shut, Fentina, before I flatten you," he threatened thickly.

"She has the right to speak the truth, Dash," Danny shot back, now standing up to protect Sam/himself. Dash walked up close to Danny, looking down at the boy like he was a piece of vermin. He started to pull his fist back, but stopped as Sam stood up and pulled Danny back. He looked at her, a look of surprise on his face.

"Don't fight him, Danny," she whispered, although in the dead silence of the cafeteria it could be heard in every corner of the room. Danny stared at her. Noticing this, she smiled. "I don't want you to accidentally contract failure from him." Danny's expression slowly turned to one of amusement, and he sat down. This left Dash quite confused; he ended up sitting down as well, since now teachers were starting to pay attention and if he attacked, it would be assault. Or something.

Paulina, infuriated that she had been shown up by the two, gave one last murderous glance at Danny and Sam, before walking back to her table. Sam then sat down and waited a few moments before asking a question.

"Danny, why did you reject her?"

Danny looked at Sam, and smiled. "I've been thinking these past few days, and I decided that I don't like her anymore. I...I guess I've realized there's things more important than looks, or something." He blushed.

Sam beamed back at him in pride, her cheeks cherry red...and then stood up and ran off, feeling no pain in her legs at all. Danny was left in confusion, his smile fading. "...What just happened?"

Tucker was confused as well, but didn't let Danny see that. "I dunno, Danny, but I think you scored some points with her." he jabbed

"_Tucker!"

* * *

_

Sam burst into the old science lab, grabbed the junior who was walking to the back of the room, and forced him to dance merrily/ram into lab tables.

"Ow, stupid ta—Sam, are you feeling all right? You are acting so out of character it isn't funny." Tal mentioned, breaking away from her so more pain wasn't inflicted on him.

"He doesn't like Paulina! I still have a chance with him!" Sam wailed happily.

"Did you hear that the school was going to an all-meat lunch menu to save money since not enough students are eating the vegetables?"

Sam blinked. _"What!"_

Tal smirked. "Good, you're back to normal."

Sam glared at him.

"In any case, Manson, I take it you're going to make a move?"

Sam looked at the ground. She hadn't thought about that yet...well, she hadn't thought about it since she found out Danny didn't like Paulina anymore. "I wasn't planning on it."

"If you don't, _somebody _will. Word gets out fast around here that someone's single and looking."

Sam looked at him. What he said sounded familiar. She conceded, though. "I want to...but it's awkward just thinking about it. What if--"

"--Don't finish that sentence, Manson," Tal interrupted, looking at her critically. "You will not think about rejection. You will not think about what ifs. You will make a move before anyone else, such as, say, _Valerie_, tries to. You will invite him and Tucker to the arcade on Thursday, I'll keep Tucker busy, _you_ **will** ask him out."

Sam frowned. "I don't appreciate being told what to do."

"Do you have a better idea?"

She looked at him. "...Fine."

"See you tonight, then?"

"Yeah."

Sam walked out and back to class. As she sat down, it clicked. "Valerie said that to me! But...he wasn't there, how did he know that?"

* * *

Danny lounged in his room, milling over his homework, ghost fighting, and Sam.

Okay, mostly Sam.

...Okay, **only** Sam.

His thoughts were interrupted by the phone. He picked up, and immediately perked up when he heard the voice at the other end.

"Sam! I thought you were going to the arcade!"

"I am," she replied. Danny's excited mood faded. "I'm about to leave, but I want to know if you and Tucker want to meet at the arcade with Tal and I tomorrow afternoon, after the half-day. Can you come?"

He jumped at the chance. "I'll be there."

"And you'll tell Tucker for me, right?"

"Oh, yeah, sure."

"Okay...see ya, Danny!" She hung up.

Danny stared at the ceiling, letting the phone fall to the floor. Well, even if he had to spend it with Tucker and whoever Sam was seeing, he would at least get to spend some time with her.

"_Heh, look at you. Sunday night, you were still crushing on Paulina, and now you're head over heels in love with your best friend! You should listen to me more often." _Danny's "voice of reason" was back, apparently.

"_I guess I should..."_ Danny replied, preoccupied with other thoughts.

On the roof of the place next to the Fenton household, Mental blinked in surprise. He didn't expect that reply. The two had it bad for each other, it would be such a shame when, after he hooked the two up, Danny would soon be killed. He'd never see it coming, him being blinded by rage from Sam's dea...

The ghost was flying in the air as he thought about this, and he didn't notice the billboard he flew into. As he picked himself off the ground, he went back into deep thought.

"_First off, the kid gets stronger when he's angry, I witnessed that for myself. And secondly...but if it doesn't happen, the Council will have my ectoplasmic hide."_

Milling further, he flew to the arcade.

* * *

Thursday morning rolled around. The three friends were back to normal. No awkward silences today, no blushfests by Danny or Sam (Danny's went away in the first few minutes of talking to her). The student body waited restlessly for the bell, when school would be out for the week. Time went soooo...o...o...o...o slowly.

_Ring_

Teens burst from the front doors of Casper high. Freedom! Hallelujah! I bet you really don't care and want to know what Danny/Sam/Tucker are up to!

Danny and Tucker were waiting at the flagpole. Sam said she was going to get her friend Tal, and he'd drive them to the arcade. Soon, she and the lanky guy walked up.

"Danny and Tucker, correct? Your reputations precede you. Tal Marylin," he introduced, holding out both hands for a handshake.

"We have reputations? Awesome!" Tucker said as he shook Tal's hand left hand. Danny just said "hi" (he was still jealous) and shook the right hand...and was promptly zapped by a joy buzzer.

"What was that for!" Danny yelled angrily as he shook his hand. Tucker and Sam hid their laughter.

"I'm a bit of a prankster. Sorry!" Tal apologized, before turning around and walking to a small white car. Turning around hid the grin on his face; the buzzer worked perfectly, distracting Fenton from his ghost detection breath, just like Danny's thoughts had been distracting him throughout the week. "C'mon, sooner we get there, sooner we can start!" he called out.

The three walked over to the car. "Foley, you get shotgun."

"Why do you want me to have shotgun?"

"Because I want Fenton in the back since he can't break anything in revenge for the buzzer back there, and Sam's preferred music is dark and depressing and not what I want to hear right now. Note that shotgun gets radio control."

Tucker quickly took the seat. As Danny got in the back, Tal winked at Sam, before taking the driver's seat.

"In and buckled everyone? Yes? Good, because I'm going."

And they drove off. Fifteen minutes later, they pulled up to the arcade and got out of the car. They walked inside, trying to stop Tucker from singing to the song that had been playing on the radio. As soon as they were inside, the illusion that had been placed on the arcade building fell, revealing the true, old, and dilapidated exterior.

* * *

"So, what exactly have you two been doing here the past two evenings?" Danny asked as the group meandered through the quiet arcade.

"This!" Tal yelled, stepping up onto the DDR pad, beaming. Danny and Tucker just looked him, before breaking out into fits of laughter.

"You guys! Yeah, I thought it seemed a little geeky at first too, but it's really fun! Just watch for one game. Please?" Sam asked. Danny shut up. Tucker did a bit later, after Danny stepped on his foot.

"I think we can handle one game. Show us what you got, Sam." Danny replied, giving her a sheepish smile for his behavior.

Tal had already set up the game, and within moments, a song had started playing. Arrows came soon afterward, and when they did, any thoughts Danny and Tucker were having at the time stopped as they were captivated by the players.

Danny just watched Sam with admiring eyes. Even in combat boots, she hit the steps with grace. Her movements were controlled and flowing; she actually looked like she was dancing, and Danny couldn't get enough of it.

Tucker, on the other hand, was watching Tal. The lanky boy didn't look nowhere near as good playing as Sam, but how the kid was hitting all those steps so quickly and accurately, Tucker didn't know. It was, in his opinion, scary Tal whats-his-face could do that.

The song ended, and the boys applauded.

"You two are _scary_ good."

"You were awesome, Sam!"

Sam blushed, Tal took a bow. Then, the next song, which went over the same way -- Tucker gaping, Danny smitten, Sam blushing.

Tal hit the Roulette option. "And for the last song, Sam will pick it from the roulette."

Sam hit the button. The four had a split second to see the song was called "Memories♥", and it was by someone by dj samm. The background screen was a simple black, with MEMORIES♥ in the middle in white. Then the music played.

A sweet, slow, soulful melody escaped from the speakers. Clearly, this melody could have only been composed by someone with passion, intelligence, and individuality, since the melody switched keys quite often. On Tal's side of the screen, a enormous mass of arrows slowly crept up the screen, while Sam's side still had nothing. Finally, Tal did the L/R jump, and the music froze. Then, things started to get a little creepy. Danny's voice played from the speakers.

"If there's anything you wanted to say to me, now might be an excellent time to say it."

Then Sam's. "I...I..."

At this point, Danny, Tucker, and Sam were all frozen in shock. Something was seriously wrong. Tal was just frozen because the music hadn't started yet.

The quote, however, was then finished by an echoey version of Sam's voice, almost as if she had thought the end.

_"...I love you."_

And then everything went to hell. The sides of Sam's pad, as well as the middle part dividing Tal from Sam, sprouted glowing green walls, encasing Sam inside. Her scream could be heard for a brief moment, before a fifth wall formed above her and a sixth wall under her feet, sealing her inside a glowing green ghost cube. The tempo of the soulful melody, which had returned, was quadrupled, and Tal was on the other side moving like a madman.

"SAM!" Danny yelled. He started to run to her, before he was held back by Tucker.

"Get off me, Tucker! Sam's in trouble!" Danny shouted over the music, his temper flaring.

"I know, but look at the screen!" Tucker shouted back in panic.

The halfa did so, and his eyes widened as he looked. On the screen, various scenes of what appeared to be Sam's life were popping up, before exploding into black. But they weren't just any scenes.

Danny, who was on the roof of a building, walking towards Sam with lovestruck eyes.

Danny, who was dancing with Sam at the school dance.

The two fake-out make-outs.

Danny and Tucker just watched in shock as hundreds of moments like these flashed on the screen. They didn't notice that every time Tal hit an arrow, the scene disappeared, like it was being deleted.

The said boy then did another L/R jump, and the arrows ceased. As the music dwindled off, the walls vanished, and Sam's unconscious body fell to the ground.

Danny ran over, his face pale, his expression worried. He kneeled down and held Sam's head in his arms.

"...Sam..." he whispered, his body shaking madly as he did so.


	6. Can't Stop Falling In Love

**And this is it, the finale! Much thanks to all who have been reading, it's been quite fun writing this. So, I hope you enjoy:  
**

_**Chapter 6: Can't Stop Falling In Love**_

"_...Sam..."_ Danny whispered her name again while looking down at the blacked-out girl in his trembling arms. She looked so peaceful...but Danny didn't have time to reflect on how pretty she looked unconscious – after all, looking peaceful was also a sign that one was dea--.

Danny shook his head to clear his mind. He couldn't think like that. She was alive. She **had** to be alive.

Danny didn't know what he'd do if she wasn't.

He then noticed her torso slowly lift and drop, which eased some of the infinite worry in the halfa's mind. She wasn't dead. Still...what happened? Or rather, who happened? Logically, it had to be a ghost that did this; the luminous green was a _dead_ give-away. And Danny had a feeling he knew who it was that staged the attack.

Tucker interrupted Danny's sinking feeling by running over and kneeling down next to his two friends. He looked at Danny solemnly. "Listen, I'll get Sam someplace safe, you go find the_ thing _that did this to her," he whispered. He put an accent on the word "thing" so Danny would know Tucker knew it was a ghost without Tucker actually saying it. Since if Sam's friend found out, that would NOT be a good thing.

In exchange for avoiding that bad turn of events, though, Tucker and Danny were greeted with a more sinister one. Tal's voice was barely above a whisper, but the eerie calmness of it chilled the boys to the bone.

But the contents of that voice froze them to their souls.

"There will be no searching necessary, Mr. Foley. Your ghost has been among you this whole time."

Danny and Tucker slowly directed their gaze upwards. Their eyes went past the older boy's legs and middle body, all of it normal looking. His devilish grin was as human looking as theirs would be.

Their appraisal of his body stopped cold on his eyes. They weren't emerald, but a brilliant green, which radiated back at them. The exhale of the two boys stopped in their throats, and Tal threw his hands up and laughed in their faces. While Tucker let a curse breathe from his mouth and Danny's already explosive temper mixed with his desire for revenge at Sam's attacker, Tal's human look shimmered and faded, leaving the purple-garbed ghost Danny had fought two nights ago in his place. The ghost pointed at Danny and had a stare down with him as he spoke.

"I told you I'd be back with a new mind game, Phantom. And here I am. As for you, Mr. Foley...please get Samantha off the dance pad so I can explain the rules of the game to Fenton." Mental whispered.

* * *

"Game!" Danny yelled, the ring of blue passing over his body. "Is that what she is to you, just part of a GAME!" 

Mental made a move to speak, but Danny cut him off.

"Tucker, get Sam out of here and get the thermos so you can pick up what's left of him," Danny stated coldly, before flying at Mental, who phased into the ground. Tucker nodded, picked up Sam, and started running towards the exit.

"No one harms Sam and gets away with it!" Danny yelled, charging at his surfaced enemy once again. The halfa's hands shimmered with the barrier-breaking property they had obtained during the last fight.

His foe smiled. "Except you, right?" he taunted, flinging a barrier downwards. It smashed onto the back of flying Danny and sent him to the ground, which he phased through. Although the halfa was no where to be seen, Mental continued speaking anyway, his tone accusatory.

"I mean, think about it! Your constant drooling over Paulina in front of Sam? How tactless are you! I may have knocked her unconscious, but that's _nothing_ compared to the anguish you've put her through time and time and time again with your puppy dog stare and superficiality. I, personally, fail to see how Sam could have kept her friendship with you intact for so long, let alone a crush! But, I suppose you don't care. After all, _'you're not lovebirds'_ or anything. And Foley, stop moving." Tucker promptly ran into a green barrier, and fell to the ground. Sam's body dropped a few inches away.

"And Fenton, don't try and phase her out of here. You do and I'll make sure you never get her memory back." Mental threatened.

Danny became visible, stopping himself from continuing to do what Mental warned him not to do. A look of remorse was painted on his face as he looked at Sam. It hardened as he turned his gaze to his ghost foe.

"My words sting, Fenton?" he taunted.

"What did you do to her memory?" Danny asked icily, ignoring the comment.

"Didn't pay attention to the screen, did you? 'Memories♥ by dj samm.' Samm, as in Sam M – Samantha Manson. And that heart next to "Memories" obviously means that they were her love memories. I'm a mind ghost, see, I can do that. Did you notice how they were all of you?"

Danny nodded, his eyes narrowed, and the ghost continued. "Well, I couldn't just let you have a sneak peak at her mind, and then just leave and let you act on the fact she likes you. I mean, I'm here to destroy you, not help you. So, those steps I was doing to that song of hers? Memory deleter steps. All those lovely thoughts of you, gone at the stomp of my feet. Simply put, she loved you, but when she wakes up, she loves you not. In fact, she won't even know who you are."

The ghost gave the two boys a twisted grin. "I love messing with peoples' love lives. So fun."

Danny gritted his teeth, and balled his fists. "You're a sick freak. How dare you mess with her mind. I'll--"

"Spare me, Phantom," Mental interrupted, peering at the halfa over his spectacles. "Even if you pound me to a pulp and send me to the Ghost Zone, it's not going to bring her back. This isn't some sort of fancy lingering ghost spell, like Desiree or Ember." The ghost's voice became more scolding, almost as if it was insulted Danny even implied it.

"I, unlike them, realize that powers that affect you humans are much more effective when they don't go away as soon as we hit the Ghost Zone. Her memories are mine, kid, and the more you go off raging and charging into battle, the more I'm apt to just leave here and not give you the chance to bring her memories back, although she might be better off not--"

"You can bring them back!" Danny interrupted, now paying close attention.

"I can. And that's where the game lies, Fenton." He paused before continuing. "You want her memories back, you play me on the machine. I pick the songs and difficulties, you have to beat me in any one song."

Tucker couldn't suppress a laugh, while Danny had a "you've got to be freaking kidding me" expression painted on his ghost face. "You want me to play you in _DDR_ for Sam's mind. What kind of fight is that? Are you nuts?"

"Hello? My name is Mental, we had this conversation before. And yes, my game for us to play is DDR. I needed something in which you can't pull out some freaky little halfa power on me and win. Since, if you agree to the game, you'll lose your mind as well if you can't beat me." the ghost replied ominously.

"My powers aren't fr—wait, you'll erase my mind if I lose?"

His foe smirked. "Correct, Phantom. Still so eager to save your girlfriend now?" Mental taunted.

Danny glared at him. "She's not my girlfriend," he denied. His tone was a curious one. The denial in his voice was lame, as if he didn't mean it. And the teen couldn't keep a tone of disappointment from his words, as if he was sorry she wasn't. "Fine, I'll play you in your twisted little game, and I'll beat you, too." The halfa stepped onto the dance pad, as did Mental.

"I knew you'd see things my way," Mental mocked. "Ready to lose the game, Sam, and your mind as well?"

Danny rolled his eyes. The ghost was so _lame_. "Please. How hard can this thing be?"

Mental just chuckled. Danny's body tensed up and his jaw dropped as the arcade seemed to disappear, leaving him, Mental, and the machine floating somewhere in the Ghost Zone.

"What th--"

"Like the scenery? I find it more comforting."

"You find the Ghost Zone _comforting_?"

"As for your difficulty question, I have four words for you. Paranoia Survivor Max Oni."

* * *

"Danny? Danny! Hey, Inviso-Bill! ...Crap, he can't hear me." Tucker sighed. This was getting freakier by the minute. Things were weird enough until Danny had got this expression of shock on his face. And then those two said they were in the Ghost Zone, but how could they be when they were standing right in front of him? And neither of them could hear him, either. Which was annoying, since Danny had utterly failed that first song, and was now enduring a verbal lashing by that Mental thing, without any moral support. 

Tucker looked down at Sam. If she were awake...well, no, she wouldn't be giving moral support to Danny. Her mind was gone. And soon, Danny's would be too – all that ghost had to do was pick two more ridiculously difficult songs, and Danny would be finished!

"_And I'll lose my two best friends,"_ Tucker thought sadly. And there was nothing he could do about it. He had tried to escape again once he found out that the two ghosts were seemingly oblivious to his presence now, but he was met with another barrier.

Tucker was about to lament further, when he heard a pained groan from the floor. He looked down, surprised. "Sam! You're awake!"

Sam shook her head, and slowly got up. "Ugh...I feel like a pile of bricks just fell on me." she groaned while rubbing her forehead.

"Actually, I think it was an ectoplasmic ghost shield," Tucker corrected. Sam responded with a glare.

"I'm sure that information will help me in everything I do, Tucker," she quipped. She then caught sight of the ongoing battle. "...Who's the purple-clad ghost and why is Danny fighting him?"

"The ghost is named M—_why do you know Danny's name?_" Tucker asked. He was stunned—Sam wasn't supposed to have a recollection of that.

Sam just stared at him. "Tucker, Danny's my best friend, and you're asking me _why I know his name?_"

Tucker blinked. "Fine, I'm sorry! Just listen. That purple ghost up there is named Mental, the real form of that guy you've been hanging out with all week. He played your 'I love Danny' thoughts on the DDR screen, knocked you unconscious, said he'd erased your mind, and got Danny to play against him for your mind. If Danny loses, he loses his mind. Except, you still have your thoughts, so apparently he just lied to get to Danny." Tucker then exhaled.

Sam stood stunned. "Wait...that ghost is _Tal?_ And he's trying to erase Danny's mind? And **he showed my feelings to Danny!**" she practically shrieked.

"Yep," Tucker responded lamely.

"We've got to get Danny off the platform!" Sam said, mainly to herself. She ran towards the machine. "Danny!"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Sam..." Tucker warned.

She was almost there when she was suddenly stopped by another barrier. When she hit it, though, a voice started talking into her head.

"_Relax, Sam. Fenton will be just fine. By the way, I'm sorry for having to knock you out. It was part of the plan."_

"_How will everything be just fine when you're going to erase his mind! And what 'plan'!"_

"_I'm not going to erase his mind. I just need him to think he is, as I needed him to think that you had lost yours. Just sit back with Tucker and watch the show –the finale is coming up shortly, and I know you'll **love** the ending."_

"_Like I'm going to trust you!"_

"_Listen, Sam. You're the first real friend I've ever had. You provided a foil to my over-zealous wit, you're the first person I've ever felt I could talk to about things. You're the first person I've told that I'm not romantically interested in the opposite gender. I'll never do anything to harm you, nor anyone you care about. I promise. Anyway, I gotta go. I'll see you in a few."_

Sam sighed in frustration, Mental's voice leaving her. She looked at Tucker.

"Apparently, we just need to watch. Danny's not in any danger," she replied softly.

"How do you know that?" Tucker shot back.

"Tal told me."

"Hello? That's the guy who's trying to erase Danny's mind in the first place! Of course he'd tell you that."

Sam turned to watch the boys on the dance pad. "I trust him."

* * *

Danny gasped for air while sitting on the pad. This was insane! How was he supposed to even attempt to beat this crazy ghost when all the songs were super-fast? His ectoplasmic legs felt like lead. And Mental's insults after Danny failed abysmally weren't helping. 

Said ghost looked down at Danny with disdain. "Pitiful, pitiful work, Phantom. It looks to me like you aren't even trying."

"I **am** trying, excuse me if I can't move my legs at Mach 2." Danny retorted bitterly.

"Really, you're trying? That must be why you stop in the middle of a stream you can't sight-read, letting your lifebar drain out and making you fail. Or maybe that's because you don't give a damn about Sam. Hehe, that rhymed."

"No, that's not it...I just--"

"--like Paulina better, and would rather not have Sam nagging over and over about liking her, so you figure if you don't remember Sam, nothing will stop you from getting Paulina!" Mental accused.

Danny stood up, his expression angry. "That's a lie. Paulina is nothing compared to Sam." he spat.

"Your performance indicates otherwise."

"It's true!" Danny shouted, his temper rising ever further.

"Then say you love her, Fenton! It's already obvious you like her, but let's hear you say it!"

Danny glared at the ghost. It was true, he did love her. But...saying it would be denouncing the facade that he had tried to portray for months. The "We're not lovebirds" part. And even if he did say it, Sam still wouldn't know who he was, let alone love him back.

"Your silence speaks volumes, Fenton." Mental taunted, snapping Danny from his thoughts.

"Would you shut up already!" Danny irately commanded. His whole body was glowing.

"Now that I know you only like Sam as a friend, yes," he responded.

Mental turned away, and was about to select the final song when he heard Danny whisper.

"I love her."

The ghost turned back around to meet Danny's intense gaze.

"...I can't hear you, Fenton."

"I love her!"

"That doesn't seem like conviction to me, halfa!" Mental egged on.

"I LOVE HER, YOU TWISTED LITTLE WORM! AND YOU TOOK HER AWAY FROM ME!" Danny shouted, his and Mental's faces pressed close together, their noses almost touching.

"THEN DON'T TELL ME THAT, YOU DOLT, TELL HER!" Mental shouted back. As he did, he pointed to where Sam stood. The illusion of the Ghost Zone dropped, and Danny's head snapped to Sam's body. His eyes locked with hers, both wide with surprise.

And not caring that she wasn't supposed to know who she was, he took a breath. "I love you, Sam."

And not caring that she was doing this in public, Sam stepped smoothly onto the platform, pushed Danny back until he was leaning on the machine, and pressed her lips softly to his.

And both of them didn't care for much of anything at the moment, other than each other.

* * *

A few hours afterward, the four were sitting on solitary hill a bit outside of the city, watching the sun set. Tal, who had gone back to his human disguise, had just finished explaining everything to the three friends. The whole time, Tucker was cracking DxS jokes and Danny and Sam had their fingers laced together. 

"So, you were sent here to set us up?" Sam asked, a bit amused at this revelation.

"Yep. I must say, it wasn't that hard. You two already liked each other, all I had to do was push Danny in the right direction."

"I still don't get why you had to insult me when you were pretending to be my voice of reason," Danny grumbled.

"Nor why you had to drag us to an abandoned building," Tucker added.

Tal smiled. "Well, it wouldn't have been a good thing if Danny and I showed our ghost forms at an arcade filled with people. And frankly, it's fun to give you crap, Danny."

Danny gave a scoff, to which Sam just smiled and ruffled his hair. That perked him up quick.

Tal stood up. "Well, I have something to take care of, so I'll leave you three friends to yourselves. Feel up to doing something Saturday?"

He was met with a unanimous chorus of "Sure!", to which he smiled, said goodbye, then went invisible and flew off into the orange sky. He had not one, but three friends now. And he was going to make sure he didn't lose them.

* * *

At Casper High, he opened the communication window, his face meeting the faces of many eager ghosts. 

"Status report, Mental? Was your mission successful? How should we go about putting that miserable whelp in his place?" Skulker asked.

Mental smirked. "I'll let you guys find out for yourselves," he replied.

The eyes of the ghosts narrowed. "Don't cross us, boy, you know what will happen."

"Yes, but see, I'm on the side of Danny Phantom now. And since he's beaten all of you before, I don't think I have anything to worry about." Mental then smiled.

"He's also much easier on my eyes than you all are. Can't wait to see what he looks like in three ye—ah, I'm getting ahead of myself. Anyway, ta, Council. And make sure your psychological plans actually work next time. I mean, killing his hypothetical girlfriend does have the drawback of having a raging halfa on your hide. Idiots."

And with that, shut the window and left, leaving an angry Council in the Ghost Zone.

* * *

He flew aimlessly for a bit, before deciding where he wanted to go. Sinking down invisibly, he looked through Sam's window. She was in her pajamas, and was climbing into bed. Upon closer inspection, he could see a smile beaming from her face as she went to sleep. 

"_Good. Those nights where she'd stay up crying over him are gone now. Hehe...lucky Sam. She's quite the individual, isn't she? Gothic, environmentalist, URV, and the only girl in the entire world with a half-human, half-ghost boyfriend._

He watched her a bit longer. As he did, his smile grew wider and wider. He chuckled, before turning around._  
_

_"Sleep tight, Sam. And remember, you'll always have two specters protecting you."_

And Tal flew off into the night while grinning back at Sam's room, where a young halfa tenderly gave his love and girlfriend a goodnight kiss.

**_End._**


End file.
